Shinnecock Hills has been totally lost by the USGA the last two times it hosted a US Open.
In 2004, the USGA had to water the seventeenth green in between groups on Sunday because players simply could not hold the green on their approach shots. And in 2018, Saturday was so much of a farce that the USGA had to apologize for their course setup.
Only three players have finished a US Open at Shinnecock under par in the last 100 years, and no one achieved this in 2018, the last time America’s national open was played at this historic venue.
But this year should play slightly easier than in the past, as there’s been a change made to the golf course, which has Wyndham Clark “excited”.
Wyndham Clark ‘excited’ for wider fairways at Shinnecock Hills
To make the golf course truer to its original design, the fairways at Shinnecock will be wider than in past US Opens. That’s a change that Clark is looking forward to, because he feels confident playing off the fairways.
Speaking in a press conference before this year’s US Open, he said, “I feel like anytime I’m in the fairway, I can play some really good golf. I know it’s a little bit wider off the tee, which I’m excited about.
“But then I’d say the biggest challenge at Shinnecock is the greens. So you have to really be in the right places. The second thing I’d say is probably your speed putting. If you can eliminate kind of the three-putts or leaving yourself really challenging putts, I think that’s the person that’s going to have the most success.”
The wind is set to howl around the hills of Shinnecock all week long. Clark was asked how much of a challenge this is set to present, and he said, “This wind is not the normal wind, so if there’s any day to — any time to take a day off, it was today, because I think the normal wind is down off the left on one. It’s more of the southwest wind.
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“The wind is always a challenge here, and that’s kind of what everyone talks about. I’m just happy I didn’t have to play today, so it would be something different.
“These greens with wind, it’s going to be a real challenge, and I think whoever is patient — you’re going to miss some putts that maybe you normally would make, but you also might make some. You’re just going to have to handle the punches that Shinnecock is going to give you and stay really patient out here.”
Why widening the fairways won’t make Shinnecock Hills much easier
The rough at Shinnecock is ensnaring, and it’s critically important to hit fairways around this golf course to stand any chance of landing the green. But play off the tee is not the biggest challenge to Shinnecock Hills.
Just because you find the fairway doesn’t mean you can rest easy for the rest of the hole. The second shot is the biggest challenge, as players look to find these tiny, rapid, and undulating greens.
Shinnecock clearly felt comfortable giving players a wider landing area because they knew the real defense of this golf course is the greens. So while the players will be playing out of the rough less often, and they have a better chance of getting greens in regulation, it’s still a mighty task.
And with gusts of up to 40 mph expected this week, don’t expect too many under par finishers at this year’s US Open.
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